13) Today’s weird story: The king of the Netherlands has revealed he has been living a secret double life as a co-pilot for a commercial airline.

For 21 years, King Willem-Alexander has taken to the skies twice a month to ferry passengers around on short-haul services for the Dutch airline KLM.

Go figure.

12) They’re honoring the 1967 World Champion Cardinals in St Louis this week; they had Steve Carlton on TV for half an inning Tuesday night, mainly because Tim McCarver is one of the TV guys for the Cardinals now- he and Carlton are great friends.

Was interesting to hear Carlton, who doesn’t speak publicly much, if ever. He doesn’t own a TV now so he doesn’t follow baseball much these days, but he talked about how he and Bob Boone didn’t see pitch selection the same way when he was on the Phillies, which is how McCarver became his personal catcher at the end of each of their careers.

McCarver was great when he did Mets’ games on local TV in the 80’s and he is really good now, but why was he not as good on FOX national broadcasts? Seriously, he just sounded like a different person on national TV, less relaxed.

11) Chris Davis homered in the 12th AND 13th inning Tuesday night in Detroit; to the best of my researching ability, he is the 4th major leaguer ever to homer in consecutive extra innings:

a) August 12, 1966— Art Shamsky homered in the 10th/11th innings, but the Reds lost in the 13th inning to Pittsburgh

b) June 4, 2013— John Mayberry Jr homered twice against the Marlins- his walk-off grand slam gave the Phillies a 7-3 win.

c) September 17, 2016- Curtis Granderson homered in the 11th/12th inning of the Mets’ 3-2 win over the Twins.

10) Willie Mays (22) hit the most extra inning homers in baseball history. Pitcher Elroy Face (21) has given up the most extra inning taters- no one else gave up more than 14.

9) Conference USA will hold its basketball tournament the next few years at The Star in Frisco, TX, the 12,000-seat arena Jerry Jones owns that also is the home field for eight high school football teams in that city.

8) ESPN laid off 80 people a couple weeks ago, but is paying Mike Greenberg $6.5M a year to host a 3-hour morning show? What genius decided that was a good idea?

7) Division I basketball teams are poaching lot of transfers from low and mid-major teams, which is why we’ll see fewer first round upsets in NCAA tournament. Kid plays well at the lower level and it is almost like he expects a promotion to a higher-level program.

6) They have an actual payphone at Chase Field in Arizona; don’t see many of those anymore. Put a quarter in, make a phone call; they used to be everywhere, before cellphones.

4) Dodgers 6, Giants 1— Clayton Kershaw has had nine starts against the Giants where he didn’t allow a run; seven of those nine starts were in San Francisco- he has a 1.31 ERA in 20 career starts at AT&T Park.

3) Before we anoint these one-inning closers the “greatest ever” keep in mind that in 1974, Mike Marshall of the Dodgers appeared in 106 games, and threw 208.1 innings- thats just about six outs per appearance. Marshall was 15-12 with 21 saves that year for the NL Champs. In the 70’s, great relievers got more than three outs to close out games.

Pittsburgh Penguins forwards Patric Hornqvist and Bryan Rust and defenseman Justin Schultz were ruled out with upper-body injuries for Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Final against the Ottawa Senators at Canadian Tire Centre on Wednesday night.

The series is tied at one victory apiece after the Penguins posted a 1-0 win in Game 2 in Pittsburgh on Monday. Rust and Schultz were injured in that contest, while Hornqvist sat out the game.

"They'll all be out for tonight, but they're day-to-day with upper-body injuries," coach Mike Sullivan said of the trio.

Defenseman Trevor Daley is expected to participate in pregame warmups on Wednesday, with Sullivan telling reporters that the 33-year-old will be a game-time decision after missing four contests with a lower-body injury.

--The Nashville Predators signed defenseman Andrew O'Brien to a one-year, two-way contract for the 2017-18 season.

The deal is worth $650,000 at the NHL level and $62,500 at the American Hockey League level, the Predators announced.

O'Brien, 24, was acquired by the Predators on Jan. 19 from Anaheim and appeared in 32 games with the AHL's Milwaukee Admirals in 2016-17, recording two goals, eight assists and 36 penalty minutes. He also skated in 10 games for the AHL's San Diego Gulls, posting two assists.

Mahura, 19, recorded 53 points (17 goals, 36 assists) and 57 penalty minutes in 73 games this season with Regina and Red Deer of the Western Hockey League. He set career highs in goals, assists, points and games.

The 6-foot, 189-pound Mahura helped Regina to its first 50-win season as the club reached the WHL championship series against Seattle. He tallied eight goals and 13 assists in 23 playoff games.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) The postseason can be exhausting, and playing four games in seven nights going from an emotional Game 7 to wrap up one series to the Western Conference finals is starting to take a toll on the Anaheim Ducks.

Playing the Nashville Predators inside the NHL's toughest arena in nearly 20 years sure isn't helping.

Coach Randy Carlyle said Wednesday that his Ducks just ran out of gas after taking a 1-0 lead Tuesday night in Game 3. The Predators scored twice in the third, not counting two goals waved off for goalie interference, and pulled out a 2-1 victory for a 2-1 lead in the Western finals.

Carlyle said he thought his Ducks were flat with emotion and credited the Predators for taking that out of them. A schedule that had Anaheim starting this series less than 48 hours after ousting Edmonton in a deciding seventh game doesn't help either.

''You look back and you say, `Hey, we played Game 7 a week ago today,''' Carlyle said Wednesday. ''You know, so that's four games in six nights or seven nights. And then you get more of an understanding of the intensity and the drainage that does take place on your people.''

Then there's the challenge of playing in Nashville where the Predators just notched their 10th straight playoff win dating to last season.

It's the NHL's longest streak since Detroit won 10 straight in 1997-98 after Colorado went 11-0 in 1996-97. The Predators are just the 10th team to win at least 10 straight at home in the playoffs since the NHL expanded in 1967-68. It's the 15th time an NHL team has ran off 10 consecutive playoff wins at home.

Nashville started this last year against these very same Ducks. Anaheim won the first two games in Nashville by a margin of 7-1 before the Predators won Game 6 in taking the first-round series in seven.

They haven't lost since, winning the first six at home this postseason despite being the last team in the West into the playoffs as the second wild-card.

Game 4 is Thursday night.

Ducks forward Jakob Silfverberg said he doesn't know if it matters right now if the Predators are at home or not because of how aggressively they're playing. Being at home only means the crowd, which reached 17,338 with standing room, pumps Nashville up even more.

Add to that Nashville's defensemen pinching to keep pucks inside the offensive zone, preventing the Ducks from breaking into their own zone to shoot at Predators goalie Pekka Rinne.

''A lot of times it can be frustrating because maybe you don't get as much room as you're used to out there, especially as a winger,'' Silfverberg said. ''So just a super aggressive team and especially with the crowd in their back, it's tough sometimes, tough to generate any offense.

And the Nashville fans just keep getting louder with each game , drawing new respect and attention for the home atmosphere from across the NHL.

''I've played in loud rinks, but this one blows that away,'' Nashville forward James Neal said. ''And it's just, the fans that are unbelievable. It's a special place to play, and it continues to get louder and louder as we go.''

Nashville also has outshot the Ducks in each game and been downright smothering at times. The Predators had a 21-1 edge in shots for one stretch Tuesday night before finishing with a 40-20 margin. Credit the pressure Nashville is putting on the Ducks, and defenseman Cam Fowler said it's unique how the Predators sustain that for a whole game.

''It's pretty rare to see a team that expects their players to do that for a full 60 minutes, and that's what they do,'' Fowler said. ''But they obviously feel like they have the players and the speed to do that. And it's effective and it's hard to play against. So they do a really good job at that.''

The Predators answered Anaheim's physical style Tuesday night, outhitting the Ducks 32-24 - led by Austin Watson with a game-high seven. It's all part of the style coach Peter Laviolette has instilled.

''We want to dictate the pace of the game, and we want to attack you in all three zones as a five-man unit and be tough to play against,'' Nashville defenseman P.K. Subban said.

With Nashville taking the series opener, the Predators just need to keep it up to extend this franchise's already historic run.

''Now we're looking forward to the intensity ramping up for the second game at home,'' Subban said.

Remember the 3 G's Gambling, Golf, Girls not in any particular order.....

Nashville continues to receive stellar production from its blue-line corps, with Roman Josi delivering the decisive goal and Ellis adding an assist to boost their playoff totals to 10 points each.

Anaheim Ducks at Nashville Predators (-150, 5)

Predators lead series 2-1

Buoyed by raucous fans that raise the decibels to ear-splitting levels at Bridgestone Arena, the Nashville Predators look to remain golden on their home ice when they host the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday night in Game 4 of the Western Conference final. Nashville is 6-0 in the postseason at Bridgestone and has won 10 consecutive playoff games at home.

Predators defenseman Ryan Ellis lauded the team's fans after No. 8 seed Nashville took a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven series with a 2-1 victory on Tuesday, scoring twice in the third period and overcoming a pair of apparent tiebreaking goals that were waved off. "Our fans, I really didn't think they could bring it to a new level, but I really thought they did tonight," Ellis told reporters. "We have our fans standing up the whole third period literally and cheering us on. It gives us that extra boost and that extra energy that we needed." Anaheim had evened the series with an impressive 5-3 victory in Game 2, but it was outshot by a 2-to-1 margin (40-20) and was unable to protect a third-period lead for the first time in six games this postseason. “Playoffs are a roller coaster,” veteran Ducks forward Corey Perry told reporters. “You got to try to stay even keel. ... What we did in Game 2 is kind of the game we want to play and that’s what we have to bring in Game 4.”

TV: 8 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network, CBC, TVAS

LINE HISTORY: The Predators opened as -155 home favorites but that moneyline was bet down slightly to -150 by Wednesday afternoon. The total hit the board at 5.
INJURY REPORT:

Predators - RW C. Smith (Questionable, undisclosed), LW Kevin Fiala (Out For Season, leg).
ABOUT THE DUCKS (55-27-11-3, 35-40 O/U): Perry, who was bumped off Anaheim's top line in Game 2, scored for only the second time in the past 11 contests on a bad-angle shot, but the Ducks were unable to generate sustained pressure and failed to notch a shot on goal in the final 11 minutes Tuesday. “You can’t score if you don’t get pucks towards the net with traffic and second opportunities,” Perry told reporters. “It’s something we’ve talked about, we’ve discussed and we got to do a better job.” Center Ryan Kesler has been superb on faceoffs, but he won 9 of 22 on Tuesday after going 27-18 in the first two games.

ABOUT THE PREDATORS (51-32-8-4, 43-41 O/U): Nashville continues to receive stellar production from its blue-line corps, with Roman Josi delivering the decisive goal and Ellis adding an assist to boost their playoff totals to 10 points each - a franchise record for defensemen. Overall, the unit combined for more shots on goal (21) in Game 3 than the Ducks (20) did as a team, led by nine from Ellis - who failed to notch a shot in Game 2. Forward Filip Forsberg has scored in each game of the series, with Tuesday's tying tally in the third period boosting his playoff total to a team-leading six goals.
TRENDS:

* Ducks are 1-4 in their last 5 Conference Finals games.
* Predators are 6-1 in their last 7 vs. Pacific.
* Over is 7-1-3 in Ducks last 11 when their opponent allows 2 goals or less in their previous game.
* Under is 9-1-2 in Predators last 12 home games.
* Home team is 5-1 in the last 6 meetings.

CONSENSUS: 63 percent of the public is siding with the home chalk Predators on the moneyline and 52 percent are on the Under.

Remember the 3 G's Gambling, Golf, Girls not in any particular order.....

Home side won seven of last nine Anaheim-Nashville games; Ducks lost last three visits to Music City, by combined score of 10-2. Over is 3-1-2 in last six series games. Anaheim is 2-4 on power play in last two games, after going 0-20 in previous six games- they lost last two away games by combined score of 9-2. Over is 5-2-1 in their last nine games. Predators won five of their last seven games (under 5-1-1); they’re 5-0 in last five home games, allowing one goal in all five games. Nashville is 1-16 on power play in its last four games.

8:00 PMANAHEIM vs. NASHVILLE
Anaheim is 13-5 SU in its last 18 games
Anaheim is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games on the road
Nashville is 10-3 SU in its last 13 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Nashville's last 7 games

ANAHEIM (55-27-0-14, 124 pts.) at NASHVILLE (51-32-0-12, 114 pts.) - 5/18/2017, 8:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
NASHVILLE is 31-18 ATS (+11.1 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
NASHVILLE is 23-11 ATS (+11.2 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season this season.
ANAHEIM is 55-41 ATS (+3.4 Units) in all games this season.
ANAHEIM is 37-21 ATS (+9.9 Units) second half of the season this season.
ANAHEIM is 13-7 ATS (+22.4 Units) in road games when trailing in a playoff series since 1996.
ANAHEIM is 27-16 ATS (+7.8 Units) revenging a loss versus opponent this season.
ANAHEIM is 15-6 ATS (+7.3 Units) after scoring 1 goal or less in their previous game this season.
ANAHEIM is 30-20 ATS (+8.3 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
ANAHEIM is 20-12 ATS (+7.5 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season this season.

Head-to-Head Series History
ANAHEIM is 10-9-0 straight up against NASHVILLE over the last 3 seasons
9 of 13 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+4.9 Units)

Remember the 3 G's Gambling, Golf, Girls not in any particular order.....

NASHVILLE, Tenn -- It would have been easy for the Nashville Predators to get frustrated Tuesday night.

They were taking two shots for every one attempted by the Anaheim Ducks, but between the great play of goalie John Gibson and their inability to bury chances, the Predators entered the third period 20 minutes from trailing 2-1 in the Western Conference Final.

Instead, Nashville rallied for goals by Filip Forsberg and Roman Josi to earn a 2-1 win that gave it the upper hand in the series. Now, it has an opportunity to push the Ducks to the brink of elimination in Thursday's Game 4 at what will be an insanely loud Bridgestone Arena.

"You're pressing, and a goaltender is good," Nashville captain Mike Fisher said. "The key is to just stick with it and believe that you're going to get one at some point if you keep going. That's what we did. We just didn't give up."

Anaheim coach Randy Carlyle might have doubted the validity of the shot count in Game 3, but he and his players knew the ice was tilted in the Predators' favor. At one stretch that bridged the first and second periods, Nashville fired 19 shots on net to the Ducks' one.

But Gibson, who was mostly mediocre in Anaheim's seven-game win over Edmonton in the conference semifinals, has been mostly outstanding in this series. He kept the Ducks in contention during a series-opening 3-2 overtime defeat with 43 saves, stopped 30 shots Sunday night in a 5-3 Game 2 victory and was the best player on the ice for a considerable stretch in Game 3. Gibson made 38 saves.

"He was incredible," Anaheim captain Ryan Getzlaf said. "I mean he played awesome. They were bumping into him all night long. I saw him on his back like five or six times and he stood in there and made the saves that he's supposed to, and some that he shouldn't. He allowed us to stay in the game."

The Predators have stressed net-front presence in this series, and in Game 3, it was to an extreme. They saw two goals waved off in eight seconds, shortly after Forsberg's equalizer at 3:55 of the third period made it 1-1.

Instead of backing off, Nashville continued attacking. It got a late power play and Josi pounced on a rebound in the right circle at 17:17 for the Predators' 10th straight home playoff win, dating back to April 25, 2016.

"You always try to establish your building as a tough place to play," goalie Pekka Rinne said. "I think we've been doing that. You don't want to look back at your home games as a missed chance. We've been doing a really good job."

Rinne got back on track after his first shaky performance of the playoffs in Game 2, stopping 19 of 20 shots in Game 3. He's ceded just seven goals on 174 shots in six home games during the postseason, and has permitted only one marker in each of the last five home contests.

SERIES AT A GLANCE

GAME 1
Predators at Ducks
Fri, May 12 Final 3 to 2
Recaps

GAME 2
Predators at Ducks
Sun, May 14 Final 3 to 5
Recaps

GAME 3
Ducks at Predators
Tue, May 16 Final 1 to 2
Recaps

GAME 4
Ducks at Predators
Thu, May 18 - 8:00PM EDT

GAME 5
Predators at Ducks
Sat, May 20 - 7:15PM EDT

GAME 6
Ducks at Predators
Mon, May 22 - 8:00PM EDT

Remember the 3 G's Gambling, Golf, Girls not in any particular order.....

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) Corey Perry's shot deflected in off Nashville defenseman P.K. Subban's stick 10:25 into overtime, and the Ducks snapped the Predators' 10-game home playoff winning streak with a 3-2 victory Thursday night that evened the Western Conference finals at 2-2.

John Gibson made 32 saves for Anaheim, which was the last team to beat the Predators in Nashville in the playoffs last spring in Game 4 of their first-round series.

Rickard Rakell and Nick Ritchie staked the Ducks to a 2-0 lead. But Subban scored with 6:27 left, and Filip Forsberg tied it with 34.5 seconds remaining in regulation with his fourth goal in four games.

The Predators had matched the 1997-98 Detroit Red Wings with their 10-game winning streak but missed matching Colorado's 11-0 playoff run in 1996-97.

Perry ended the second overtime in this series with a goal originally credited to Nate Thompson. Perry's shot from near the right boards deflected off Subban's stick and past goalie Pekka Rinne as the defenseman tried to poke- check the puck away. Perry has three overtime goals this year.

Game 5 is Saturday night in Anaheim.

The Ducks killed off five penalties, including a 5-on-3 in the third. But the Predators outshot them 11-5 in the third with the late flurry forcing overtime.

Subban scored off a blast from the blue line to revive the standing-room only crowd with Forsberg helping screen Gibson. Then Anaheim defenseman Kevin Bieksa, playing his first game since the opener against Edmonton in the second round, went to the box for high-sticking Forsberg. Just 29 seconds later, defenseman Josh Manson slashed James Neal.

That gave Nashville a 5 on 3 for 1:31 with 4:38 left. The Predators couldn't get the puck past Gibson.

Forsberg, who started Nashville's comeback win in Game 3, ensured overtime crashing the net with two teammates and smashing the puck across the line.

Nashville brought out the inaugural American Idol winner in Kelly Clarkson as the latest big name to sing the national anthem, and rock group Kings of Leon rallying up the crowd by waving from the bandstand in Music City's latest show of star power. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman also was on hand with a franchise-record 17,423 fans on hand.

The Ducks looked much stronger after a day off Wednesday from coach Randy Carlyle, and they pounded the Predators up and down the ice. Defenseman Josh Manson even checked Rinne against the boards behind the net late in the second period.

They also dominated the play early and caught the Predators in a line change with a long pass to Rakell leading to a slap shot that beat Rinne at 11:30 of the first. It was the seventh goal this postseason for Rakell, who led the Ducks with 33 goals during the regular season.

Anaheim wound up outshooting Nashville 14-2 in the first period thanks to the Predators being credited for a shot during the intermission. It was the fewest shots ever allowed by the Ducks in a period.

The Predators opened the second with a bit more energy, matching what they put on net in the first period within a minute. But Ritchie gave the Ducks a 2-0 lead at 10:22 with a wrister from the right circle, beating Rinne's blocker for his fourth this postseason.

Notes: This was the 47th one-goal game this postseason, four short of the record set in 207. .. The Ducks previously had allowed three shots in a period in the postseason six different times, the last in the first period of Game 5 of the Western finals May 25, 2015, against Chicago. ... Subban's goal gave Nashville defensemen eight of nine goals scored against Anaheim. ... Viktor Arvidsson had two assists for Nashville.

Remember the 3 G's Gambling, Golf, Girls not in any particular order.....

13) Bad news for my Rams (and the Chargers); there has been so much rain in Los Angeles this year that excavation at the construction of the new stadium in Inglewood has been delayed- the opening date for the new stadium has been pushed back until the 2020 football season.

12) One small quirk here; the Super Bowl after the 2020 season is supposed to be in this stadium, but NFL rules say a stadium can’t host a Super Bowl in the first year it is open. We’ll see about that.

11) More LA Coliseum news; the Coliseum has apparently sold its naming rights to United Airlines; hopefully this doesn’t mean fans will get dragged out of the stadium by their feet if games are sold out.

10) Jose Altuve had two doubles and two triples Wednesday, the first major leaguer to do that since Carl Crawford in 2005. Oddly, Altuve didn’t score a run despite the four extra-base hits.

9) There are seven schools in the SEC West; all seven of their football coaches make $4M+ a year. Boosters at the schools who finish 6th and 7th ain’t gonna be happy.

8) Jalen Poyser has transferred from UNLV to St Bonaventure; there are very few places in this country more different than Las Vegas and Olean, NY.

Mountain West and Atlantic 14 are very similarly-ranked leagues. Poyser is from Ontario so he is a lot closer to home now. He should be a much stronger kid by time he is eligible to play in 2018-19.

7) New York Mets’ starting pitchers have an ERA of 5.13 this season, 14th in the 15-team NL, which is really hard to believe, given the level of hype their pitchers get.

6) Bad news for the Atlanta Braves; star 1B Freddie Freeman has a broken wrist, is out 8-10 weeks. He was hit by a pitch Wednesday night.

5) Miguel Cabrera will miss the next couple of games with an oblique strain, which I think used to be called an abdominal muscle. Not having many muscles myself, I’m not totally sure.

4) Weird story of the day: A Girl Scout leader in Kentucky absconded with $15,000 in Girl Scout cookies and is now on the lam. What makes people do stuff like this?

3) A writer in California who used to write jokes for Jay Leno is suing Conan O’Brien for stealing at least five jokes from him in 2014-15. Stealing jokes is no laughing matter.

2) In the NBA this season, 77.2% of free throws were made. Last year, 11 of 12 teams in the WNBA shot higher than 77.2% on the foul line- Connecticut shot 71.5% on the foul line. Seven of 12 WNBA teams shot higher than 80% on the charity stripe last year.

In the NBA this season, 35.8% of 3-pointers were made. Only three of 12 WNBA teams shot better than that on the arc last season, even though the basketball is smaller and the arc is slightly closer than in the NBA.

1) Somebody didn’t vote Russell Westbrook 1st team all-NBA this season; this person needs to be identified, because thats just dumb. They should probably lose their voting rights, too.

Remember the 3 G's Gambling, Golf, Girls not in any particular order.....

OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) Mike Sullivan isn't any hurry to announce who will start in goal for the Pittsburgh Penguins in Friday's critical Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals against Ottawa.

The defending Stanley Cup champions have relied heavily on Marc-Andre Fleury during their run to the NHL's final four, but he faltered in Game 3, allowing four goals in just over 13 minutes before being pulled for Matt Murray in a 5-1 loss that gave the Senators a 2-1 lead in the series.

Sullivan doesn't plan on naming a starter until after his team's skate on Friday morning.

''I've said all along, we have two great goalies,'' Sullivan said Thursday. ''These guys have both helped us win games. They're terrific goalies, and we're fortunate that we have these guys as part of our team.''

Murray helped the Penguins to a championship last spring after Fleury was diagnosed with a concussion. He became the team's de facto No. 1 goalie throughout the course of the season but tweaked a lower-body injury during warmups before Game 1 of Pittsburgh's first-round series against Columbus. Fleury stepped in and has played spectacularly at times during the playoffs as the Penguins knocked off the Blue Jackets and rival Washington, posting a shutout in a Game 7 victory over the Capitals.

Fleury kept it going through the first two games against the Senators, including a 23-save shutout in Game 2 that evened the series and gave him 62 career playoff wins, the most among active goaltenders.

The momentum came to a sudden and emphatic halt in the first period Wednesday night. The Senators beat Fleury four times on just nine shots, with all four goals coming from in close. Murray entered for the first time since April 4 and finished with 19 saves while shaking off the rust from his six-week layoff.

''I have no expectations,'' Murray said. ''Either way, I have to be ready. That's how I kind of, like, look at it. I'll be ready to go either way whatever coach's decision is, but I'm not really hoping one way or the other. It's out of my control, so I don't really think too much about it.''

Fleury, the winningest goaltender in franchise history, is 4-1 after a loss during the playoffs and was the primary reason the Penguins were able to oust the Presidents' Trophy-winning Capitals for the second straight season and the ninth time in 10 postseason meetings. He called a couple of the bounces the Senators received ''flukey'' and is eager for a chance to go back to work.

''It's not going to go 16 games in a row perfectly,'' he said. ''So I put that one behind already, and I'll be ready to go.''

The cloudy goaltending situation has overshadowed another troubling trend that has nothing to do with who is in net. The NHL's highest-scoring team has found the going significantly tougher against the Senators and surging goaltender Craig Anderson. The Penguins have scored just one goal in each of their last five games versus Ottawa dating to the regular season. Compare that to the first meeting between the teams this year when Pittsburgh won 8-5 shootout in November.

The Senators have gained confidence using coach Guy Boucher's neutral zone clogging system and have prevented the Penguins from sustaining consistent pressure in front of Anderson.

''It's not easy to score, but I hope, like, we forget all three games and turn page, and tomorrow we like start to play our game,'' Pittsburgh forward Evgeni Malkin said. ''Like shoot the net, like play more offensive zone. If we want to win the game, we need to score like for sure a couple goals or maybe more.''

Malkin leads the NHL in playoff scoring (20 points), with Phil Kessel and Sidney Crosby tied for fourth with 15 points each. Rookie Jake Guentzel's nine playoff goals are tied for the league lead but he hasn't broken through against Ottawa. Crosby's power-play goal on Wednesday night avoided a shutout, though it did little to change the tone of Pittsburgh's worst loss of the postseason.

Crosby, who led the league with 44 goals during the regular season, stressed it's important not to let 15 ugly minutes overshadow the bigger picture.

''We're guilty of a bad start, but I think, as far as the goal scoring, I think, just keep going here, and we'll get the results we want,'' Crosby said.

NOTES: Fs Patric Hornqvist and Bryan Rust skated on Thursday but their status for Game 4 is uncertain. Both players were held out of the lineup for Game 3 with upper-body injuries. Defenseman Justin Schultz, also out with an upper-body injury, took a scheduled day off. F Tom Kuhnhackl did not skate Thursday and is day-to-day with a lower-body injury.

Remember the 3 G's Gambling, Golf, Girls not in any particular order.....

Since losing 8-5 in Steel City Dec 5, Senators are 4-1 vs Pittsburgh, allowing one goal in each game- four of those five games stayed under the total. Home team won eight of last ten series games; Penguins lost four of last five visits to Ottawa. Pittsburgh won three of last five road games; under is 3-1 in their last four games overall- they’re 1-14 on power play in last four games. Ottawa won their last four home games; Senators are 0-21 on power play in their last eight games.
Conference finals

Ottawa-Pittsburgh
Ottawa 2-1 OT
Pitt 1-0
Ottawa 5-1

Nashville-Anaheim

Nashville 3-2 OT
Anaheim 5-3
Nashville 2-1
Anaheim 3-2 OT

Remember the 3 G's Gambling, Golf, Girls not in any particular order.....

Ottawa's 1-3-1 system is largely responsible for flustering Pittsburgh, although defenseman Chris Wideman was quick to point out that it's a group effort as opposed to individual play.

Pittsburgh Penguins at Ottawa Senators (+101, 5)

Senators lead series 2-1

Big swings in NHL odds as Stanley Cup playoffs continue to shock: Live From Las Vegas
We catch up with the series odds on the East and West conference finals in the Stanley Cup playoffs. The Predators and Senators have made it interesting for hockey bettors and bookmakers. Jeff Stoneback of The Mirage sportsbook gets up up to speed on all the odds on the NHL ice.

Mike Sullivan isn't showing all of his cards just yet ahead of the Pittsburgh Penguins' pivotal Game 4 of the Eastern Conference final against the Ottawa Senators on Friday at the Canadian Tire Centre. The Stanley Cup-winning coach said he'd reveal what he hopes to be his ace in the hole on Friday morning with the disclosure of whether franchise goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury or rookie Matt Murray will get the start in net.

Fleury had been nothing short of brilliant in stepping in for an injured Murray (lower body), lifting the Penguins past Columbus and Washington and stopping 56 of 58 shots versus Ottawa in the first two games before getting shredded for four goals on nine shots in the first period in a 5-1 loss on Wednesday. The roles are somewhat reverse from last season when the 22-year-old Murray took over for a concussed Fleury and guided Pittsburgh to its fourth Stanley Cup title in franchise history. While both goaltenders said they were unaware of who will start in Game 4, Senators coach Guy Boucher offered his own take on the Penguins' netminding situation. "I don't care," Boucher said, according to the Ottawa Sun. "Whether it's (Fleury) or another goalie, it doesn't matter."

TV: 8 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network, CBC, TVAS

LINE HISTORY: The Penguins opened as +101 road chalk for Game 4 and was bet up to 103 before returning to +101. The total hit the betting board at 5 and has yet to move off the opening number.

ABOUT THE PENGUINS (59-25-8-5, 54-38 O/U): Although Pittsburgh's high-octane offense has been reduced to one goal per game in this series, forward Evgeni Malkin told reporters on Thursday that he doesn't feel any additional pressure to come through in Game 4. "I think me and (Sidney Crosby) always feel pressure every game. It doesn't matter if you play against Ottawa or Washington," the 30-year-old Russian said. "We like that. It's our hockey life. ... It's the toughest game (Friday), I think, for us." The trio of Malkin, Crosby and Phil Kessel has combined for five points (three goals, two assists) in this series for Pittsburgh, which scored an NHL-best 3.39 goals per contest in the regular season before marginally upping the ante over the first two rounds of the playoffs (3.42).

ABOUT THE SENATORS (54-32-7-4, 38-52 O/U): Ottawa's 1-3-1 system is largely responsible for flustering Pittsburgh, although defenseman Chris Wideman was quick to point out that it's a group effort as opposed to individual play. "I think it's been a full team buy-in, full team effort by whoever's on the ice," the 27-year-old Wideman said Thursday. "All five guys are conscientious of the time and the situation, where the puck is on the ice, and it's not a matter of who's scoring goals for us or who's making the plays." The defense-first mentality has been music to the ears of veteran goaltender Craig Anderson, who has turned aside 117 of 122 shots in his last four games and resides one playoff win shy of tying Patrick Lalime (21) for the most in franchise history.

TRENDS:

* Penguins are 1-4 in their last 5 vs. Atlantic.

* Senators are 4-0 in their last 4 home games.

* Under is 6-1 in Senators last 7 vs. a team with a winning % above .600.

* Under is 4-1 in the last 5 meetings.

* Penguins are 1-4 in the last 5 meetings.

CONSENSUS: 61 percent of users are siding with the road favorite Penguins and 70 percent of users are on the Over.

Remember the 3 G's Gambling, Golf, Girls not in any particular order.....

PITTSBURGH (59-25-0-13, 131 pts.) at OTTAWA (54-33-0-10, 118 pts.) - 5/19/2017, 8:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
OTTAWA is 54-43 ATS (+4.8 Units) in all games this season.
OTTAWA is 34-27 ATS (+2.4 Units) second half of the season this season.
OTTAWA is 16-9 ATS (+26.1 Units) after scoring 4 goals or more in their previous game this season.
OTTAWA is 30-18 ATS (+51.0 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
OTTAWA is 18-11 ATS (+31.7 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season this season.
PITTSBURGH is 123-80 ATS (+4.3 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
PITTSBURGH is 80-48 ATS (+10.3 Units) second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
PITTSBURGH is 37-15 ATS (+15.6 Units) after allowing 4 goals or more over the last 2 seasons.
PITTSBURGH is 31-11 ATS (+14.5 Units) after a loss by 2 goals or more in their previous game over the last 2 seasons.

Head-to-Head Series History
PITTSBURGH is 7-5-0 straight up against OTTAWA over the last 3 seasons
6 of 12 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=-0.7 Units, Under=-0.9 Units)

Since losing 8-5 in Steel City Dec 5, Senators are 4-1 vs Pittsburgh, allowing one goal in each game- four of those five games stayed under the total. Home team won eight of last ten series games; Penguins lost four of last five visits to Ottawa. Pittsburgh won three of last five road games; under is 3-1 in their last four games overall- they’re 1-14 on power play in last four games. Ottawa won their last four home games; Senators are 0-21 on power play in their last eight games.

8:00 PMPITTSBURGH vs. OTTAWA
Pittsburgh is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Ottawa
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Pittsburgh's last 5 games when playing Ottawa
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Ottawa's last 5 games when playing Pittsburgh
Ottawa is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games

Remember the 3 G's Gambling, Golf, Girls not in any particular order.....